Yesterday was the day of good deals. I have recently come to the conclusion that everything costs way too much money. While I am big on saving, I am not so great on keeping perfect track on what I am spending. I mean really, is it that hard to remember to bring coupons to the grocery store? Do I really have to buy that cute shirt if it’s not on sale? I decided I needed to make a change.

In the morning one of my co-workers told me that she went out to a pretty upscale restaurant the other night. She is not the kind of person to go out to dinner on a random Wednesday night and spend $50 just for fun. She told me there is this website called ScoutMob.com. that finds coupons for restaurants in your area…free money! I signed up immediately and snagged up a coupon that doesn’t expire until October! My plan is to go places with coupons as much as possible from here on out – this website kind of leaves me with no excuse not to. All I need to do is print off the coupons and put them in a coupon wallet, and keep it in my purse – it must be simple or I won’t follow through.

Then, I ended my day when I was invited to go to a baseball game with a group of co-workers. I have one co-worker who occasionally tried to get us all to be social outside of work and past happy hours that are sometimes work related, and sometimes actually social. He found a deal (I do not know how…I need to figure out what discount website he looks at) for tickets for an upcoming baseball game for $1. That is not a typo…I really mean go to a baseball game for one dollar. Why not? It’s less than I would pay to go to a movie, go to a bar, go shopping, or go to a yoga class…or anything! Basically, I see this is an almost free night out with friends.

How do you like to save money? Are you on any sites like Groupon or Living Social? If you have any other secrets, please let me know.

Yesterday my mom finally planted flowers in the flower bed at her house. She was so excited. She called to tell me that now the house looks so pretty. For those of you who are also considering planting (maybe a little more than my mom did) you might consider using ater Proof Knee Pads to help make gardening less painful.

It’s not as if you wear your favorite pants when you garden, but the waterproof knee pads will keep your clothes from getting stained and wet as you work. Also, if it is really hot as you are planting in your garden you might even wear shorts, so the waterproff knee pads will protect your knees from the rough mulch and dirt. You won’t need to worry about less range of mmotion either as the waterproof knee pads are flexible and bend as you move.

So, if you’re a small flower gardener like my mom, or an expert gardener who plants all year long, waterproof knee pads are the perfect accessory to your gardening outfit.

Have you guys heard? Football will go on! If anyone was concerned that their favorite football team wouldn’t be playing this year, and all of our loved jerseys would just be sitting in our closest lonely and wanting to be worn, worry no more…Football is on!

I am not really sure what is more exciting than knowing football will be played this year. The thought of a lock-out was sad, but as time passed, I really worried that my dear jerseys would have to sit out this season. I love football. Watching, cheering, getting together with other fans. I love sporting my jerseys in support of my team.

If you’re like me, you care more about getting ready for football season to begin than you do about enjoying the rest of summer. Start dusting off your inflatable mascots to put on your front lawn, and bring out the football shaped cutting board to serve game time snacks, because football is on this year!

So, if you also didn’t hear the news, check out this article to catch up and get ready for some football!

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, the weather is hot. Since the severe heat has passed—at least for now—I can get back to my normal routine. I’m still avoiding certain activities, namely, cooking. I boiled water for pasta and when I needed to bake, I opted for Rice Krispies treats; simple, easy, 3 ingredients, and no time in the oven. As the temperature drops to the mid or low 90’s instead of the 100’s, I am still thinking of ways to keep cool.

I came across an article last night, “Top 10 Eco-Ways to Keep Cool While the Planet Heats Up .” Of course, I will not list out all ten ideas for you, but I will recommend you check out the article. It gives great tips of things you can so easily do to stay cool in these ridiculous temperatures. One tip that I found interesting was to use a fan in addition to the air conditioning. But I don’t like those large plastic box fans. That’s why I opted for this cool retro fan that matches the décor of my home. Other tips from the article I found helpful were to use the oven only in the morning and to cook several meals at one time.

I hope you’re keeping cool…drink lots of water!

All weekend I had the lyrics to the song “Heat Wave” stuck in my head. Too bad the weather wasn’t just “like a heat wave,” but was a real heat wave instead! Much of the country was under oppressive heat this weekend. Staying cool was the name of the game—not so easy when you have window unit air conditioning in select rooms of your home that can barely keep up.

I went shopping to enjoy the AC in stores, out to dinner to drink frosty beverages and I went to a friend’s pool to cool off in the water. The last place I wanted to be was in my home. It was a challenge just getting ready to leave the house! The rooms that have window units were tolerable, but trying to do my hair in the bathroom (no AC!) was miserable. You’ve heard the saying, “If you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen.” Well, I really did have to stay out of the kitchen. I was sweating just standing still!

Before the next heat wave hits later this week, I’m getting a portable air cooler. I can roll it from room to room and use it for just as long as I need without having a loud, bulky AC unit stuck in my window from June to September.

I don’t mind the heat, but now it won’t keep me out of the kitchen…or any other room!

I crave frozen yogurt and/or soft serve ice cream just about every day. Also, I love to make everything I eat from scratch. If you like to make things at home and do it yourself, then the new Yonanas Banana Ice Cream Maker is exactly what you are looking for.

By using the Yonanas ice cream maker, you can quickly make your own healthy soft-serve ice cream as healthy, or as unhealthy as you would like. All you need to do is add in frozen bananas, and any topping of your choice to the Yonanas banana ice ream maker, and you’ll create your perfect ice cream flavor at home. You can even freeze your latest creation from the Yonanas ice cream maker to make popsicles.

The Yonanas banana ice cream make is just what you need to make the perfect summer treat. Enjoy summer…and make some ice cream!

I hate grocery shopping. I don’t like to go by myself so I generally just dash in and out for some fruits and veggies to make salads for lunch for the week. On the nights I eat dinner with Peter we always go to the grocery store together to shop for our ingredients. We get what we need only for that meal and usually decide what to make on the fly. With our lack of planning ahead, I never have coupons—not that I look for them anyway. Why do I not like to save money? I do, however, have 3 $10 coupons from the supermarket from shopping there so often. Every time Peter and I go to the store we remind ourselves we have these $10 coupons, and inevitably, 30 seconds after we leave the checkout line we remember the coupons – I even keep them in my purse so I do not forget.

I think I need to start a new system. Planning ahead would be a good start. If Peter and I know what we want to have for dinner that week, we can look up recipes and search for coupons for those ingredients. If I kept a list of other items I needed to get, I can get those while shopping for that night’s dinner and it would probably lead to fewer trips to the store overall! To keep this all neat, organized and in one place, I can use the magnetic coupon holder. If everything is visible, hanging on my refrigerator, it is more likely that I will remember to take and use the coupons and stick to my list.

If I recall correctly, when I was young the checkout clerk would ask, “Do you have any coupons today?” Why don’t they ask anymore? I could use the reminder!

What would you consider a perfect Sunday? How would you spend a day just relaxing? What would you do? What would you need? Let’s say, for instance, that you had a whole day to do nothing, how would you spend it?

There are some days that all I want to do is literally sit on the couch, watch television (good shows, bad shows, movies, reruns, etc.), eat snacks, and veg out. Sometimes having that time to do nothing is important. I was so close to having that kind of day Sunday. I didn’t really have much to do. I went grocery shopping, put laundry in the machine, made lunch while laundry was going, and cleaned the bathroom while laundry was in the dryer. It’s a good feeling to be done before the sun goes down. After the chores, all I had left to do was call my mom and sit on my couch and do exactly what I love…nothing! It’s so nice to have that time every once in a blue moon.

What would have made my “night of nothing” better? Not having to get up for anything. My place is small, but when I’m cozy and comfy on the couch, the last thing I want to do is continuously get up to reach for food, my beverage, a book, the cell phone, or remote control. What I really wanted was everything at my fingertips. I really wished I had the arm rest organizer. It will hold everything you need including food, phone, remote controls, and anything else you need.

Enjoy your resting time!

I am the queen of trying products to use on my face. If you’re anything like me and don’t have the best skin, you’ll likely try just about any product that claims to resolve the problem you have. Personally, I have oily skin that breaks out, but the products out there generally dry my skin, but moisturizer makes it oily again…vicious cycle. Maybe you have dry skin; maybe you have wrinkles you are looking to get rid of. Whatever your problem, if it bothers you enough, I am sure you have tried everything that you think might help at all – just like me.

Over the weekend I read an article online called “9 Foods to Smear All Over Your Face.” I was instantly intrigued by the title, so I opened it up to read what it had to say. In fact, I am always interested to read what kind of foods in my refrigerator I can potentially use to make my skin better.

What was most interesting about this article versus other “home spa products” is that it actually recommended products that I had in my fridge all the time. To be honest, I am always skeptical about rubbing food on my face, but since I thought it was pretty cool and convenient I thought I would share some of the food items with you here. Items you can use on the list included bananas, oranges, lemons, yogurt, oatmeal, and vinegar. So, head out to the grocery store, get your regular staples, and hang your fruit on your fruit holder, because that’s what you’ll need to get closer to perfect skin.

Are you a handyman(woman)? Do you enjoy making and creating new items from scratch with your own bare hands? Is the best gift someone could give you a tool of some sort so you can finish projects more easily? If this is you, or if you know someone like this, you will definitely want to check out the Twin Cut Power Saw Plus.

The Twin Cut Power Saw is exactly the tool you need to get work done. You’ll be able to cut through just about anything, including steel by using the Twin Cut Power Saw. The dual blades on the Twin Cut Power Saw rotate in opposite directions, which allows a more powerful and precise cut from a power saw.

With the Twin Cut Power Saw, you can say goodbye to excessive heat or kickback that you would get with using a regular power saw. Now you can make the tough part of sawing through the material in your do-it-yourself project easy with the Twin Cut Power Saw.